Baling-press.



No. 630,252. Patented Aug. I, I899.

L. MATTHEWS.

BALING PRESS.

(Application filed Feb. 23, 1899.)

(No Model.)

INVENTOI? MW WITNESSES:

UNiTEn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LUTHER MATTHEWS, OF PARIS, TENNESSEE.

BALlNG-PRESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 630,252, dated August 1, 1899. Application filed February 28,1899. Serial No. 706,582. (Nomodelfi To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LUTHER MATTHEWS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Paris, in the eountyofI-Ienry and State of Tennessee, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Baling-Presses, of which the following is a specification.

My invention is directed to the improvement of the hand-actuated hay-baling press constructed for the continuous production of the bales; and my said improvement resides in the provision of a hand-lever having a pawland-ratchet connection with a rotating crankshaft for actuating the plunger orhead-block, in combination with a check-pawl and retractin g-springs, whereby the operation of forming one bale pushes the other out of the press, the operation being thereby rendered quick and under the control of the arms of the operator and doing more work and at less cost than by horse-power. I

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 shows the press in perspective, the actuating ratchet hand-lever being in the position when the plunger is retracted to receive the loose hay. Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of the same. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section of the same. Fig. 4 shows, enlarged, the actuating hand-lever and ratchet device, and Fig. 5 shows a modification of the handlever device.

The press-box 1 is of the usual oblong balechamber form and is provided with a top hopper-opening 2, through which the hay is forced into the bale-chamber to be formed into a bale by the presser or plunger 3 in the the usual manner. A shaft 4, having double cranks, is mounted in the vertical sides at the open end of the box, and the cranks 5 stand in the same plane on the same side of the shaft and are of the same length and each is connected by a rod 6, which connects the plunger byhinge connections. Between the cranks a lever 7. is mounted to swing freely on the shaft 4. The shaft-connected end of said lever being forked and being loose on the crank can have no function in actuating the crank-shaft. For effecting such function a ratchet-hub 8 is fixed on the shaft between the forked ends 9 of the lever, and between the'se lever forked ends is pivoted a ratchet-pawl 10, standing forward, so as to engage the ratchet-hub 8 of the crank-shaft to rotate the latter when the lever is actuated and thereby force the cranks inward and drive the plunger upon the hay, compressing it in the billing-chamber. The plunger is thus driven forward intermittently as the lever is raised and lowered by the operator. Tholever for this purpose stands out at theopen end of the box and its action is against the ratchethub, which causes the lever tohave an effective force to drive the cranks inward with their plunger connected rods. The ratchet-hub may be comparatively small and the ratchet-teeth sufficiently far apart to give an effective stroke to the lever, so that each vibration will drive the plunger inward to-an extent that will require but few movements of the lever to complete the full pressing movement of the plunger.'

The baling-chamber has the usual slots to allow the bales to be tied, one tied bale being forced out of the box by the pressure of the plunger in forming the next bale behind it.

The double cranks give an easier and uniform sliding movement to the pressing-plunger, and the crank-actuated rods are hinged to the plunger near its ends and Inediately of its height, preferably to a horizontal crossbar, the ends 12 of which project through slots 13 in the sides of the press, which serve as ways on which the follower rides and thereby keep it from sliding on the bottom of the baling-chamber and make its movement easier.

As a means of retracting the plunger or head-block after it has been forced to its full forward position I provide coil-springs 14, preferably arranged at the outer sides of the box,and which are connected to the ends of the plunger cross guide-bar and to the sides of the box or ends of the crank-shaft, so that the forward movement of the follower will expand the springs, and when the crank turns its dead-center the tensile strength of the springs is exerted to pull the plunger back in position to repeat the operation of driving it forward by the ratchet hand-lever. As a means of holding the plunger as it is intermittently driven forward, and while the ratchet-lever is moving back to engage the teeth of the ratchet wheel in such driving action I provide a pawl 15, pivotally secured to the press so as to standoutward and kept in engagement with the crank-shaft ratchet-hub 8 by its weight, as in Fig. 4, so that while serving the function stated it allows the crank-shaft to be rotated by the ratchet-lever, or I may make such a pawl also a spring 17, as in Fig. 5. This construction places the pressing and the retracting movements of the plunger under the control of the hand power-lever in rotating the crank-shaft, and it will be noted that in thus rotating the crank-shaft by the vibratory movement of the hand ratchet-lever the driving and the check pawls maintain their engagement with the ratchet-hub of the crankshaft. In this operation, in which the plunger is advanced by steps, its resistance constantly tends to force it back, and when the lever is moved to take a fresh hold on the ratchet the plunger would be forced back and be rendered inoperative but for some means cooperating with the hand-lever to hold the plunger as it is advanced step by step to the full throw of the crank. So in like manner it would be utterly impossible to operate the. crank-shaft by the ratchet and hand-lever under the retracting action of the springs without some means cooperating with the handlever to hold the plunger as it is advanced step by step against the force of the retracting-springs, and it is this cooperating means that renders the crank-shaft, its ratchet, hand-lever, and pawl an operative combination with a pressing-plunger.

I I have shown the lever-ratchet device arranged so that the lever may actuate the crauk-shaft by a depressing or by a lifting movement; but I prefer the arrangement in which the force is applied on the downward movement of the hand-lever.

I claim as my invention- 1. In a baling-press, a press-box, and a reciprocating pressing-plunger, a crank-shaft, a pitman-rod having a jointed connection with said crankshaft and pressing-plunger, a. ratchet-hub on the crank-shaft, ahand-lever having a pawl engaging said ratchet-hub, a check-pawl likewise engaging the ratchet-hub whereby during the intermittent movement of the hand-lever in its pressing function the reverse movement of the ratchet-hub is prevented, in combination with coil-springs connecting the plunger and press-box and operating to fully retract said plunger the instant it passes its full forward stroke.

2. In a baling-press and in combination with the press-box frame having slide-slots, a pressing-plunger having bearing-pins in said slots, a crank-shaft, a pitman-rod having a jointed connection with the plunger, a ratchethub on the crank-shaft, a lever having a pawl engaging said ratchet-hub, and coil-springs connecting the plunger bearing-pins and the frame,a check-pawl also en gaging said ratchethub whereby during the intermittent movement of the lever in its pressing function the springs are prevented from reversing the movement of the ratchet-hub.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

LUTHER MATTHEWVS.

WVitnesses:

O. A. MATTHEWS, DUDLEY PORTER. 

